The South Carolina men's club lacrosse team is looking to rally and turn its season around after a shaky 2-7 start, as it strives for its third consecutive championship title.
Gamecock lacrosse won its first Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association National Championship in 2019. The team then followed with another championship victory in 2022, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 and 2021 championships were canceled, meaning that the Gamecocks were back-to-back champions.
This year’s team, however, has faced challenges since the beginning of the season. With new faces and younger players, the team is still trying to find its groove. Furthermore, multiple starters have been sitting out due to injury.
The Gamecocks are not unfamiliar with beginning-of-the-season struggles though, as it experienced this during its 2022 championship run where the team started the season 3-3 but went on to win 17 games in a row before its championship win.
“I mean it's funny it's kind of starting the same way this year like it did last year," junior defender and co-captain Teddy Russell said. "I mean, that's the goal is just to win out from here.”
Five of the team's seven losses this year have been by two goals or less. Freshman goalie Colm Flynn said the main obstacle in the team's way is finishing games.
“We come out really hot in the first quarter, then we kind of just dwindle down," Flynn said. "But that just comes from getting after each other in practice. We've had a lot more intense practices. Hopefully, that doesn't happen ever again.”
Head coach Peter Candela said the schedule for the Gamecocks is not exactly a cakewalk. They play almost all of the top-20 teams and play everybody in the top-10 of the league.
“My philosophy is iron sharpens iron," Candela said. "I want young guys wondering what those teams are like. Even if we lose games, it's not a big deal to me, because we really need to hit our stride may and later on in the season those guys need to know what it's like playing those types of games.”
After nine games into the season, however, senior midfielder and co-captain Trenton Wylie said the team can't rely on its past history to produce results.
“I've been trying different things here and there to see what will help us, but it's kind of hard because we've got a lot of new guys this year. With us being the returning national champions, I feel like they've stepped into this realm and just thought, 'Oh, it's going to be a breeze. Gamecocks are just good at lacrosse,'" Wylie said. "We still have to put in the grind."
Candela and Russell said that while the team is young, the chemistry and comradery around this year’s team have never been stronger and that could help turn the season around. Wylie said he also feels like mentor for a lot of these young guys coming in.
“I definitely try to be a leader for them on and off the field,” Wylie said. “Somebody that they can look up, to talk to about anything, whether it's about lacrosse or not.”
But it is not just a bond between just the players. The team carries fans from all over the U.S. In Utah, after a Gamecock lacrosse fan was struggling in school, his mother reached out to Candela.
"We took some pictures with him and signed a bunch of gear and stuff for him," Candela said. "He got to come out to practice and hang out with the guys, so I think just that kind of stuff and philanthropy work that our team does constantly is what makes me proud."
With the rest of the season ahead, the Gamecocks have a lot to work towards, but the goal still remains the same — bring a championship trophy back to Columbia.
The turnaround may have already begun, as the team snapped its seven game losing streak Sunday after an upset victory over No.1 ranked Virginia Tech.
"I think people are doubting us heavily," Russell said. "I do like an underdog mentality because I know how good we are and everyone in our program knows how good we are."
For its next matchup, the Gamecocks will host Boston College on Friday, March 24.